secsportsfan

The SEC league, considered by sports pundits, fans, and bookmakers as the top college football league in America, held a teleconference last week to discuss changing the season schedule.  Organizers of the conference spoke with several SEC head coaches for their thoughts on the proposed changes.  The teleconference was notable in occurring only days before the 2013 NFL entry draft, which included a number of prominent SEC players.

One of the main points of the conference meeting was to propose a change from the current eight-game schedule to a nine-game schedule.  The SEC includes six teams who each play each other once every year, as well as two rivals from other leagues – one of which is a permanent annual meeting.  The proposed season change will introduce another inter-league match to the SEC, and potentially eliminate the permanent rivalries to help even the scales.

The conference organizers spoke with several SEC coaches about the proposed changes, all of which supported the elimination of the permanent rivalries.  The coaches hinted that a “fairer” system would be to randomly select inter-league matches each year, potentially by allowing a computer to randomly generate matchups.  Nick Saban, who coaches the Alabama Crimson Tide, says every player in the SEC deserves to play every other player at least once during their four year college football career.

“One permanent opponent and one rotating, means you’re going to play some of the other teams every six or seven years.”

The conference occurred only days before the 2013 NFL entry draft, which included a multitude of eligible players from the SEC.  The draft concluded with a significant number of SEC players drafted into the NFL, which set a new record in the number of drafted players from one college football league.  Details of the landmark achievement are available to read here.

The SEC was ranked as the best performing college football league since 2006, and the number of NFL qualifying players on this year’s roster solidified the league’s position as the crème de la crème.

A lot of college sports fans were surprised to see Missouri and Texas A&M bolt from the comfortable confines of the Big 12 Conference for the Southeastern Conference.

Many argued the switch of these two teams set in motion a string of conference switches that reshaped the college-sports landscape as we knew it.

Still, you can't argue the switch of Missouri and Texas A&M wasn't done because of the higher visibility and therefore the more lucrative paydays that potentially lie ahead for the Tigers and the Aggies.

The Big 12 landed a television deal worth $2.6 billion to telecast both football and men's basketball for 13 years, through the 2024-25 season. However, there are two television contracts in the SEC, one with ESPN that pays $2.25 billion through 2023. A separate deal with CBS is worth $825 million, or $55 million a year for 13 years.

All told, that still adds up to less than the Big 12 deal. However, there is no argument when it comes to which conference is better when it comes to national football championships and the bottom line.

Alabama has won 15 national championships in football, including three in the last four years, instantly raising the visibility bar of the entire league. Thanks to shrewd recruiting from coach Nick Saban and his staff, not to mention a solid offense and strong defense, the Crimson Tide have been among college football's brightest lights.

The old expression “a rising tide lifts all boats” may also be at play here. According to the most recent figures made available, Big 12 schools spent $131,286 on athletes for each year of their schooling, including tuition, room and board, expenses two and from games, etc. That number rose to $163,931 at SEC schools. Keep in mind these figures are for every athlete, not just football players. So when a conference spends approximately $32,000 more per year on an athlete, it looks a bit more attractive to some people. Others may ask are schools paying too much?

Consider that ticket sales, TV/bowl revenue and athletic donations make up two-thirds of the program budget each year. The intense popularity of SEC football means more for the other athletic programs offered by each school.

What if a bank offered you $30,000 more to switch? You would do it in a minute. You could find the highest cd rate and put that money away. You could open a money-market account, invest it in mutual funds, or whatever you wanted to make that pile of cash grow. The schools see this payday and salivate, so it was easy for Texas A&M and Missouri – not to mention schools in other conferences that moved – to make the change.

Time will tell how these two schools do in the league. Texas A&M, thanks to Heisman quarterback Johnny Manziel, has already made a splash. Missouri traditionally has a solid football program. The schools' other athletic programs are solid, like Missouri in men's basketball and A&M in women's basketball.

The landscape is not done changing yet. More moves are ahead in college sports, and it may get to the point where you don't recognize most leagues anymore.

Still, college sports in general are attracting more attention than ever before. The more people watch, the more moves there may be in the future – and the more money that lies ahead.

With many top golfers coming from college programs within the SEC, it's very possible one of them could win the Masters in April. This is one of the biggest golf tournaments of the year and everybody playing will be gunning for the Green Jacket. Here's a list of four of the top SEC golfers playing in the Masters this year and the chance they have of winning it all.

Top SEC Golfers in the Masters Field

Brandt Snedeker

Brandt is playing great golf this year and he's already put one trophy in his case. Not only did he win the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, but he's also finished second twice, and third once this year. He's made cuts in all five tournaments, but didn't start in the match play event, due to sore ribs. Snedeker is in the field for the Masters 2013 and should be healthy by then.

The chances of this SEC golfer winning the Master in April are pretty good. He's won a total of five PGA Tour events. In 2008, he finished third at Augusta and has played the tournament a total of five times. He could easily be considered a favorite to pull out a big win and go home with the Green Jacket.

Jason Dufner

Dufner hasn't done much this year, but finished last year hot. He's got game and will bring it at the Masters. With two wins and a second place finish last year, Dufner is ready to make a run at his first major victory. He's been at the top in majors before and could be again in April. This will be his third time in the tournament and he made the cut in both previous appearances.

Brian Gay

Gay might not be at the top of most experts’ favorites at Augusta, but he certainly has the game to win. With one win under his belt already in 2013, he knows how to finish. Brian has won four times on the PGA Tour and is ready to win his first major. He won't be considered a favorite going into the tournament and he didn't make the cut in his only other appearance, but he has a good chance if he can start off strong.

John Peterson

Getting into the tournament by finishing tied for fourth place at last year's US Open. He's never played in the Masters before and doesn't have much to show other than six made cuts on the PGA Tour and one top ten finish. If he wins the Masters in April it will surprise absolutely everybody, but golf is full of surprises.

With all four of these guys, along with others from the SEC playing in the Masters, there's a chance one of them might come out on top. It will be an exciting tournament to watch and any of these four guys making the cut could lead to some good weekend drama.

It is that time of year when you can feel the excitement as college basketball hopefuls are vying for a chance at a title. But before these teams can move through all the brackets, they have to get beyond the bubbles. With SEC teams still eager for the 2013 March Madness season, the big question now is who is going to move from bubbles to brackets?

Bubble Teams?

Colleges on the edge of getting into the tournament based on an upcoming game are known as bubble teams. And according to Bleacherreport.com there are about a dozen teams in the SEC trying to make the move beyond the bubble, including:

• Arkansa Razorbacks.
  
• Auburn Tigers.
  
• LSU Tigers.
  
• Texas A&M Aggies.

Not all of these teams will make it. But there are a few more that may have a good shot at getting to the end.

Alabama Crimson Tide

'Roll, tide, roll' is a familiar war cry for any Alabama fan, but if the Crimson want to roll on into the brackets they're going to have to do some more work. Sports writer Tim Keeney states, "A likely quarterfinal matchup with Tennessee could potentially serve as an elimination match". Team leaders to be watching:

• #12 Trevor Releford.
  
• #21 Rodney Cooper.
  
• #5 Trevor Lacey.
  
• #14 Moussa Gueye.

Kentucky Wildcats

The Wildcats have a long lineage of great basketball. John Clay at Kentucky.com believes "These Cats are too flawed...but a trip to the finals would surely convince the NCAA Selection Committee they deserve a spot in the field". Columnist Bobby Regan lists 5 things that UK needs to learn from their recent wins:

• Julius Mays is their best on-ball defender.
  
  
• With the win over Florida- they're the #2 SEC seed.
  
  
• Alex Poythress can rebound against anyone.
  
  
• Willie Cauley-Stein is their MVP.
  
  
• They have the skills to play winning games.

Jerry Palm of CBS predicts Kentucky will be a #12 seed playing La Salle in the First Four game.

Tennessee Volunteers

Will Shelton and Rockytoptalk.com are bolstering the likelihood that the Volunteers can take it all the way this year. After last season's one-and-done tournament fade, Tennessee fans have witnessed the momentum lately and are positive the wins will continue. Shelton mentions what SEC viewers need to be watching for like:

• Tennessee needing to beat:
  
  • Winner of Ole Miss and South Carolina.
• No bid-stealers in current conference tournaments.
  
• Winners to hope for:
  
  • Duke
    
  • Memphis.
    
  • Kansas.
    
  • VCU.
    
  • Michigan.
    
  • UCLA.
    
  • Missouri.

Becoming a Part of March Madness

March Madness really is like no other tournament. College basketball fans rally in the stands with school chants that have been around for decades. They stomp their feet, yell at the top of their lungs, paint their faces, and are more lively and demonstrative than any other fan base for any other sport. If you want to find a way to participate you can get some tickets and head to a game, have tournament parties with your friends, or find interactive contests like at www.21st.com/landing-pages/en/car-madness.jsp.

The SEC is going to be something to watch as their teams work to make it through March Madness. Get some tickets, or hop online and connect with other fans and find a way to be a part of the 2013 season!

The Sugar Bowl 2013 between Louisville Cardinals and the Florida Gators turned out to be one of the biggest upsets the Sugar Bowl has seen. The game was won by Louisville with a 33-22 margin, and the most valuable player turned out to be the Louisville quarterback Teddy Bridgewater who is now set for an exciting and financially spectacular career in NFL. Florida Gators had been the big favorites with a massive 14 point advantage in the spread, so anyone betting on them would have been laughing all the way to the bank. The coin had been tossed by Mohamed Ali a native of Louisville, making one of his rare public appearances.

NFL betting on the new season which gets going in late April is heating up as punters take advantage of some exciting pre-season Superbowl odds. There is little to choose between the odds on the top teams, and New England Patriots, San Francisco 49ers, Denver Broncos, Green Bay Packers are all priced at between 7/1 and 9/1 depending on the bookmaker. However you can find some very interesting odds too, for instance although some bookmakers are pricing Chicago Bears at around 25/1, some more daring ones are offering odds as high as high as 43/1, which must be a value bet.

In just about any online casino like http://www.bellerockentertainment.com you are sure to come across some slot machine games based on NFL. An interesting one is Pigskin Payout which has a somewhat different take from the average slot. The reels are depicted as a score board and the symbols all represent some aspect of the game of American Football. There are cheerleaders, a quarterback and other players, a strategy board, and for those who are feeling a little peckish, even fast food such as beer and fries. There are also some entertaining animations including dancing cheerleaders, and the top payout is an impressive 7,500 coins. Other games worth looking at are Fruit Bowl XXV and $5 Million Touchdown, both of which are progressive slots.